This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

An independent review of the quality and effectiveness of ITT courses has been announced today (1 May 2014) by the Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove.

Providing the best possible training is at the heart of this government’s drive to improve teaching standards and ensure children from all backgrounds have the opportunity to achieve academic excellence. The review will look across the full range of ITT courses and will seek views from those involved across the sector to:

define effective ITT practice

assess the extent to which the current system delivers effective ITT

recommend where and how improvements could be made

recommend ways to improve choice in the system by improving the transparency of course content and methods

Andrew Carter OBE, Headteacher of South Farnham School, leader of a school-centred ITT provider and ITT lead on the Teaching Schools Council has been appointed to chair the review. A review panel will be appointed in the coming weeks.

Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove said:

There has never been a better time to be a teacher. There are more teachers in England’s classrooms than ever before, with a rise of 9,000 in the last year, and there is no doubt that the current generation of young teachers is the best ever.

While we have already taken steps to improve teacher training, including through the popular School Direct route, it is right that we look at how we can ensure all courses are providing the best possible training.

I am very pleased to appoint Andrew Carter to lead this important review. He has a wealth of experience in this area and I look forward to receiving his report.

Andrew Carter OBE said:

I am delighted to accept the government’s invitation to carry out an independent review of the quality of initial teacher training.

I have championed the importance of ITT in my work at South Farnham School, Surrey South Farnham SCITT and on the Teaching Schools Council. Since 2010 we have seen significant change in education and it is paramount that trainees are prepared to face the demands of the 21st century classroom.

The review will report to the Secretary of State for Education by the end of the year.

Notes to Editors

To improve the way teachers receive their initial training, the department has introduced School Direct, a programme to allow schools to recruit and train their own staff; ensured that all trainee teachers must pass the skills tests in literacy and numeracy before starting their teacher training; and made training bursaries available to top graduates who are interested in teaching.

There are a number of ways to get into teaching. A range of routes have been designed to suit different trainee needs, these can be school or university led. All courses involve spending time in school to develop teaching skills and build trainees confidence. More information is available on the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) Get into Teaching website.

We expect the review to consider a range of courses led by university providers, SCITT (school-centred ITT) providers and School Direct partnerships. These will include courses from across a range of subjects and phases. It will be for the review group to identify the specific courses they wish to consider.

The review is launching today and will report to ministers by the end of this year.

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